Thursday, September 30, 2010

We got up at the crack of dawn today and headed for the Taos Pueblo. October 30th has been a day of celebrating the harvest for the Indian tribes of this region for many centuries. The Pueblo is a reservation now and the Indians guard their privacy and customs carefully. The Indians live communally in multistory mud and adobe dwellings. This day is the only day of the year that non-Indians are allowed into the Pueblo. No cameras are allowed, so we have no pictures of the day but it was quite an event. Foot races started at 7:30 AM just as the sun peaked over the mountains. Later in the day there was a pole climb that scared us to death. Young men climbed a 60 ft. tree trunk that had been cut down by tribe members, never touching the ground until it was erected in the square. A slaughtered lamb and huge bags of produce were hung from the top. The first indian that reached the top got the goodies. There were lots of vendors from all over the Southwest selling all kinds of indian crafts. It was a long day which we broke up with a 6 mile hike to the top of Divisidero Peak.

Monday, September 27, 2010

The 2010 Taos Design Outside the Lines Retreat is starting its third day. I'm having a great time getting inspired by the instruction as well as the other participants. Sewing as art - that's the thing - and Diane Ericson and Marcy Tilton are artists, first and foremost. For me, it's just fun to slow down, quiet the mind, chat with new friends and old (Diane Lea and her husband came, too), enjoy the beauty of Mabel's house and the delicious meals the staff prepares, awake to the Taos landscape from our Solarium room, etc. Ron is happily exploring Taos and scouts out the best place for dinner. It will be hard to leave on Tuesday with so many ideas yet to be realized in the work room.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Arriving in Taos this afternoon was a real treat. The city of Santa Fe, despite its quaint, historic center, has grown to a busy, 75,000+. We haven't really gotten a chance to explore here in Taos as yet but we're told that this little town of 5,500 has grown a lot, too, in recent years. Nonetheless, Taos seems lovely and accessible in its smallness. We drove straight to the Mabel Dodge Luhan House http://www.mabeldodgeluhan.com/ and checked into our room. This place is steeped in history and you can see why Georgia O'Keefe, good friend of Mabel Dodge, loved staying here. Our room is at the top of the structure and we have to walk up several narrow flights of stairs to get here. It's almost all glass and looks out over the mountains. Beautiful views . . . no curtains ...we'll be waking up with the sun tomorrow.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

So...when we left Flagstaff on the AM of Wednesday the 22nd, we headed for Santa Fe, New Mexico. It rained the whole 400+ miles. All the arroyos along the highway were not dry beds, but raging rivers. Anyway, we got to Santa Fe in time for dinner at Coyote Cafe. Ron and I remembered this restaurant from 16 years ago when it was new, and so were we. Today, the 23rd, we walked around the plaza and went to the NM History Museum and the Art Museum . After a nice rest at the hotel, we had dinner at a beautiful hotel that Austin and I stayed at 18 years ago. The place had just opened back then and I took Austin, about 8 or 9 yo at the time, with me on a business trip to New Mexico. We stayed here during a snow storm. Lots of great memories of Santa Fe and some new ones being made.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

From the moment we started down the Red Rock Canyon toward Sedona from Flagstaff we were in magic land. The walls of the canyon were so close and colorful. Lots of interesting formations, majestic in size.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Yesterday we drove from San Francisco all the way to Kingman, AZ, home of Route 66 memorabilia and mediocre Mexican Food. After a good nights steep we got on the road to Santa Fe - but on the way, decided to go to the Grand Canyon. We spent the day along the spectacular South Rim then drove to Sedona for the night. It's so beautiful here...